I was working with the MK Spring 2009 Luminous Eye Colors. An earlier look using these colors is here.

You can see how looks can be varied using the same color pan. In RL the colors were blended, but distinct. The flash makes the colors look uneven. The eye to your left is more the way it looked in RL.

I'm posting today what I looked like on Wednesday because my blog was down.

Crease: luminous brown, a beautiful color
Inner Corners: luminous lime
Outer Corners: luminous teal

Lower: Lined with MAC pencils graphblack in waterline, earthline below, then the luminous teal dry lined below that, also used for upper line.

Upper: tight lined with MK teal pencil from this collection, then drylined above the lashes with luminous teal.

I don't remember any of the other colors I used for cheeks or lips. Sorry!

Karin

Originally posted 2009-03-20 09:34:53.

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Quick and simple works for most days, especially if I wanted to layer up to something more dramatic by the end of the day. It would be easy to do that with this, or even just to change the lipstick for more drama. The longest part of this was tweaking the foundation, trying to use an expensive foundation that isn't the right color, but it is the lightest that they have.

5 parts makeup again: face; cheek color; eyes; lips; brows.

Eyes: my usual base, including Queen Phyllis (BE); then 1 shade of Ulta shadow (a green) and a bit of Ulta shadow with more sparkle (a light silvery gray) because I needed the sparkle; Chanel greenblack pencil to line; Clinique mascara.

Concealer: I used Maybelline Matte Mousse foundation for concealer again (not the concealer.) I find it is a the perfect color, not too light, not too dark, and much simpler than using two products. Also the texture works well and it doesn't crease.

Brows: La Prairie pencil

Face:
Foundation: I have an expensive Guerlain foundation, but I think it is too dark/yellow so I don't reach for it very often. Today I thought I'd mix it with Chanel illuminator, but it still looked too yellow. It doesn't pick that up, though, once my makeup is complete. But it takes the fun out of using it. Additionally I used more of the illuminator to highlight the center of my face.

Cheeks: rouge under my sparkly mix and over the mix, both Lancome, different colors, but both in the pink and plummy range.

Lips: Sephora 10, a sort of grape color (and tastes grape) with quite a bit of micro glitter in it. I generally don't wear it alone, but I really liked how it looked today. I've reapplied it several times, staying with the same color. I just didn't feel like changing it.

What are you doing with your makeup lately? Is the heat getting to you?

Karin
www.savvythinker.com

Originally posted 2010-08-10 15:35:50.

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It's been hot, hot, hot here for a couple of weeks. Record breaking hot. But we are beginning to get some serious rains every day, so that is breaking the heat somewhat.

I'm not sure why, but red was calling to me, and I usually only wear red lipsticks in December. I even wore a matching red T. These pictures were taken a couple of days ago, and I don't remember precise colors any more. So I'm going to go with easy and post what I can and leave the rest to summer.

Eyes
I used my usual base. These colors are Bare Escentuals, which I really like a lot. They go on easy and don't bother my eyes. Clinique Mascara. La Prairie brows.

Red Lippie
No, I don't remember what shades I used, but I know I topped it with a MAC gloss. I've been wearing those a lot lately.

Face
This was Revlon ageless cream foundation. The rest as usual: cream rouge under my sparkly powder mix; Arbonne blush over the top of the powder.

I hope you are having a great summer and that you are staying cool.

Do you wear red year round?

Karin
www.savvythinker.com

Originally posted 2010-08-09 11:43:19.

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Still using some Chanel colors.
Primer: Chanel blue liquid
Dual: Sea Gray/Petal -- soft blue/gray; petal is a soft almost pink peach
Blue in the crease; the pink above the crease, not to the brow
Drylined top and lower: the blue from Chanel Sea Mist (trio)
Pencil lined: Chanel light and dark blue pencil, discontinued but my favorite blue
Brows: La Prairie pencil
Mascara: Arbonne 2 step
Concealer: Arbonne

Makeup the same as yesterday. Except Primer is Arbonne. YSL Blush, used also for bronzer, is # 19. It comes in a pot with a sponge on the top, very easy to apply by dabbing wherever you wish.

Lips: NYX Rhea + MAC Popster lipconditioner, rimmed and a touch on the bottom lip of Beauté Allure.

To buy Arbonne from Bookgirl, if you don't have a representative, go here.

Karin

Originally posted 2009-06-17 11:42:53.

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Happy Easter to everyone! What did you fix for your meal? We had Shrimp de Jonghe.

I thought this turned out so pretty today.

This was a very simple look. My only difficulty was getting both eyes to match in depth. One eye went on stronger, then I had to match it. It takes a little practice with Fyrinnae because the technique is different: dabbing, not sweeping.

Eyes:
Base: Nude Frost, then Meow Nicole S
Crease, lightly on lids, drylined on lower: Fyrinnae Daijodan
Lined upper: Lancome pen in Blueberry -- these pens are very, very nice, in all the colors -- have you used them? what is your favorite color?
Brows: La Prairie pencil
Mascara: CoverGirl Lights Sapphire

Primer: Laura Mercier
Foundation: L'Oreal N1, liquid
Rouge: Beauté Harlot liqui-gel stain
Power: my sparkly mix, with BE Mineral veil as bronzer
Blush: Meow Masterpiece Water Lilies
Lips: Mary Kay Metallic lip liner, a true brown liner, MAC Sweetie, topped with Pinkaratgloss, rimmed with a lighter gloss and used up the center too. Still hoping for a different shade.

I like Daijodan really well. It is such a pretty blue!

What do you think?

Karin

Originally posted 2009-04-12 18:21:02.

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The Smoky Eye look is one of two eye sets that Arbonne has put together. Judging from how beautiful it looks on the model and how beautiful the Audrey Eye look is in the travel palette and on Shari, I wanted to try this sight unseen. Shari has a palette set up in it, but didn't think to bring it when Book Girl had her last party.

When my palettes arrive, I'll take photos of the sets in the palettes then post the pictures here, on yesterday's FOTD, and in a new post.

You can see the Smoky Eyes on a model here. Aren't they lush!

This set repeats the brown shade (matte) from the Audrey Eye look, but adds a bronzy shade (shimmery) to go with it. If I hadn't seen it on the model, I likely would not have ordered this shade because I wouldn't have thought it would work on me, but it does. It is very pretty combined with the brown, and will be beautiful alone also.

I applied this without looking at the recommended order of colors. Next time I will remember to do it the other way. One change: wetline, not tightline. The other: use the shimmery bronze (Charade) just over the pupil of the eye. Inkling is a beautiful color. It is not as black a navy as it appears; it is a true navy. I applied

Lids: linen, then smudge with inkling, adding Charade a bit over all
Drylined top and lower: Inkling I wanted to bring out the blue
Tight lined top and lower: Eclipse, smudged with smudger on the pencil
Inner corners: Illume. shimmery white
Mascara: Guerlain
Brows: La Prairie pencil

Primer
Foundation: Revlon Age Defying (one side) Revlon Spa (other side)
Highlight:
Rouge under powder: MK stick
Powder: Guerlain meteorites
Blush: Arbonne Savvy, the soft apricot shade

Lips:
Arbonne Illusion + Legend 1/2 and 1/2, 1 on each lip, smooshed; then blended well with a lip brush, because it looked like light lipstick with dark liner.

I loved the lip color on the model. I'm going to try this right now, just to see, since my earlier color is gone. Illusion looks quite brown in the tube, not the soft apricot on her lips. Stay tuned for a LOTD post.

What do you think?

I think this will be very pretty for fall -- and I'm feeling like fall, even though the temps have not broken. It's still hot, hot, hot here.

If you'd like to order any of these Arbonne products and do not have a consultant, Book Girl would be happy to help you.

Karin
www.savvythinker.com

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Originally posted 2009-08-23 13:11:00.

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I was happy with the way this turned out.

I spread out my Meow samples and thought what did I want to try:

Eyes:
Base: Nude Frost (there is some question as to whether this irritates me, but so far, so good today -- I gave it a rest, then tried again today) then my sparkly eye mix
Lid and Crease: Meow VandalEyes Misdemeanor (lime)
Crease and drylined top and lower: Meow VandalEyes Shoplifting (deep vibrant purple)

The lime is a little lighter and brighter than it photographed. You can see the glitter liner on the eye to your right.

Lined: Estee Lauder Plum Grey pencil (which turned out to be more grey than I remembered, so I went over the line and past the line with Meow)
Glitter lined over the top of liners: GirlActik Lavender -- gorgeous color, this line was my first foray into glitters, before AL Rocks! glitter
Mascara: (top, to your left) Mark Scandalash Indigo (purple)
Mascara : (top, to your right and lower lashes) Estee Lauder MagnaScopic purple
The EL is a tad darker.
Brows: La Prairie pencil

Finished look:

Primer: Smashbox Purple Primer
I like the color lift that this gives.

Foundation: Revlon Age Defying Liquid Color 04
I like this foundation and use it often.
Rouge: Mary Kay stick from a limited line
Powder: Lustre Aromaleigh Twilight supernatural powder
Nice gleam. Used my normal powder brush, not a FO.
Blush: Meow Masterpiece Water Lilies Love this color!
Lips: NYX Round Gloss Apricot 19
This is gorgeous and vibrant when applied heavily. Later it softens to a delicious stain-y look, but it is still moist with product on the lip. You can see how it looks here.

I quite like Meow mineral shadows. I am sampling several types, but they all seem to be equally pigmented and equally easy to use.

VandalEyes are our newest, most highly pigmented collection of multi-purpose eye shadows. Silky smooth and designed to be extra long wearing, they're intense and powerful but they are *not* for the faint of heart...Can be applied dry for a bold look, or foiled (applied wet) for the most intense color and sheen.

I'd love to try more of their Masterpiece blush line.

Masterpiece Blush Gallery: Our newest blush collection, uniquely formulated and unlike any other blush you've ever tried. They're sumptuously sheer, and sweep on your cheeks invisibly, leaving only a pure wash of gorgeous colors behind!

Karin

Originally posted 2009-03-23 13:32:53.

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As I said in my earlier post today, I wanted to try the NYX colors I had not tried before. Once in a while a color combo blows you out of the water. This color combo is gorgeous and one of my faves!

Eyes:
Base: Nude Frost on lids, not under brows; then BE Queen Phyllis
Lids: NYX Luxor, square individual shadow with a clear lid, an exact match to my T
Drylined: NYX Red, square loose shadow with micro shimmer
Lined: Chanel blue duo pencil, lightest color
Tightlined: NYX Jet Black Felt Tip liner
Inner corners: Arbonne Illume (white matte)
Mascara: Clinique
Concealer: Guerlain
Brows: La Prairie pencil

Primer: Avon Magix
Foundation: Revlon Age Defying cream
Rouge under my sparkly powder mix: Chanel stick
Blush: Arbonne Promise
Highlight: Arbonne Bashful

Lips: AL Balm + MAC pencil -- see my LOTD for more.

Karin
www.savvythinker.com
don't steal my posts -- you know who you are

Originally posted 2009-09-04 15:29:17.

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What's a woman to do when the newest high tech face creams are running several hundred dollars each? And how is one to choose one over another, if one is staving off the knife?

Honestly, are they all worth that kind of money? Chanel, La Prairie, Shiseido, Clea de Peau all have their moving-up-to-$500-each creams. Some need to be layered just to have enough moisture -- what's the use of that. And how does one compare an expensive cream by Chanel with a more expensive cream by Chanel sold only in a few select stores? or a Clea de Peau cream with another Clea de Peau cream? Do you think the SAs really know?

Are they old enough to have really given them a run for their money?

Well, the only fair way would be to use one on one side of one's face and the other on the other. Then you could tell folks why you appear only half-rested.

Surely some of this is hype and some is reality and some is making you feel the more expensive, the better it works. But is it true?

Perhaps there are equally good things from other much less expensive drug store lines, all of which say they use their own labs to come up with new things. And maybe if the truth were known, the differences are in the packaging as the labs may be supplying to several lines owned by a parent company.

Believe it or not, it was Avon that changed some of the creams many years ago when they first brought in alpha-hydroxy. And theirs is still one of the best. They have one of the best facilities for research and development of any company.

So, what's your favorite face cream? Do you think it works? Would you spend that kind of money on a face cream? or do you reserve that for shoes or handbags or perfumes or airline tickets? How many mega creams do you own and use? (or owned and used up)?

What's your favorite recommendations?

How much of beauty is from within and how much from taking care of ourselves? (I have a couple of friends who are proud that they do nothing, and it shows. How much of that is laziness or frugality? Or not being able to see without one's glasses?)

If I didn't use something on my skin, it would hurt in a couple of days from dryness. That's not a bad thing, when it has caused me to continue to take care of my face. But I sure don't want to spend money for the proverbial Emperor's new clothes. They ought to sell mini-jars so you could test them at home.

Karin

Originally posted 2007-10-19 12:57:14.

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Here are some thoughts on various types of serums and the links to posts where I have written more specifically. Some of the serums are pricing their way out of my price point. There are actually some that are over $1000 being marketed in Japan. I suspect some are worth it; others are not.

Whenever possible, let a beauty advisor put some on your skin. See if it is possible to get a small amount to try at home before you commit to a big purchase.

This is only a partial list, as I have thought of them. I will continue to update, as I think of it.

Body Serum
Arbonne has a wonderful body serum and body lotion. You can find my review at the above link.

Facial Serums
There are also serums targeted for eyes.
Anti-Wrinkle
La Prairie CELLULAR Retexturizing Booster
This just might be a miracle product. Whenever I apply it, I see immediate results. I generally use it for several days at a time, then I give it a rest and use it again when I see the need. It is expensive, but it really works. I think it works better than Renova. Price: $185.00 | 30 ml / 1.0 oz. (Unfortunately, it's possible this is no longer available. I have not tried any of the comparible LP serums to see if a newer one is as good.)

Serums with Vitamin C
Many companies have C-serums because they work. I have used C products for years. Mary Kay is one of the companies that has just added a C formula. If you can't beat them, join them. The important thing is to find a C serum that works for you, then use it.

Here's a partial list of companies that have C-serums: Awake, MK, Aromaleigh (generic), Lancome, Estee Lauder, Prescriptives, Avon, Lumene. Choose the link above to see my thoughts on each.

Arbonne has a number of excellent serums, including lifting, RE9 (with C), and Revelage (whitening) I won't be without the lifting or the whitening.

Avon has been a leader in skin care, very innovative. They were the first line to come out with an alpha-hydroxy -- and it made a big difference in my skin. Their anew products are excellent. I do not care for either of their pump serums that they had a couple of years ago, because they smelled so bad. I recommend smelling them before buying to see if they still smell. I didn't notice a huge difference like I did with their alpha-hydroxy products. Some of their products are targeted by age.

Beauticontrol
Beauticontrol makes several serums that I like. Some are targeted for 30's, 40's, and 50's skin. I've liked Regeneration Gold for years. It's a two step process that mixes when you pump it. It used to be that one was red, the other white. Now one is green, the other white. I do not know if it is the same product. Regeneration Platinum Plus is supposed to be the next step up, but it rolls on my skin, so I use it only on my neck and chest and bought more of the Regeneration Gold. They make C products, but I've not tried them as I have others that I am using at the moment.

Chanel Serums
Chanel makes a number of serums, and they are all excellent. It depends on your price point and your skin concerns. Sublimage products kept me moist even in the dryness of Las Vegas, using no other moisturizers layered in. The Radiance line has an excellent hydrating serum. As an aside, I did not care for Sublimage eye cream.

Clarins
I have used Super Restorative Serum. I likely might buy it again. I like what it says it does; I'm not sure I saw it doing it. I tended to use it more for hydrating than anything else. When I opened the container, when it seemed empty, there were still several days worth of product left. I put it in a small jar and used it to the last drop.

On the whole I like Clarins products, so I suspect their other serums would be good too. Their beauty advisers are generally knowledgeable and happy to help you. They are good about giving small samples to try.

Cle de Peau serums
Cle de Peau is the high end Shiseido line. CdP makes a number of serums, and they all feel good. I'm not sure how to choose one over the other. I have one. I'm not convinced it does anything particularly, but that might be because I tend to use others that I have.

Dior Serums
Dior makes some excellent serums. Capture Totale and HydrAction are two that I have tried. Capture Totale came highly recommended by a woman in NYC who swears by it.

Guerlain serums
Orchidee Imperiale is their highest, newest line. It is excellent. Super Aqua-Serum came highly recommended on the strength of one older woman who works for Guerlain whose skin is exceptionally beautiful. It's a toss up which is better. Take your pick. They also have Success Future and Substantific serums. I get my Guerlain from Claire at the Palazzo in Las Vegas. Call 702) 732-7008 or email GuerlainPalazzo.STORE@lvmhuspc.com

Hydrating serums
La Prairie CELLULAR HYDRATING SERUM is an excellent hydrator, one of the very best. It is lightweight. It works by binding moisture to the skin and restoring the skin's natural moisture barrier. A little goes a long ways and it stays fresh in the bottle. I use it generally on very cold days or whenever my face feels like it needs more moisture from the inside out. Price: $185.00

La Prairie Serums
Like Chanel, these are excellent, and it depends on your price point. I have not tried the latest lines.

Shiseido serums
Shiseido has a number of serums that are all excellent. Again, it depends on your price point and what you are hoping to accomplish.

Signature Club A
Super Strength High Potent-C Anti-Wrinkle Capsules $29.50
I like this a lot. It's in my rotation of C products.

Retinol Wrinkle Penetrating Capsules 12 Hour Release $32.50
This is in my rotation. I like it a lot.

Viviane Woodard
I've used these products since I was 18. They have a number of serums, including specialized ones to use at night. Their day time serums are very good and moderately priced. The evening ones really give your skin a boost. They are used only periodically. Unlike ones by La Prairie that are also used only occasionally, these will not break the bank. Likely they perform different functions, but they help the skin.

Whitening serums
Many companies offer whitening serums. They started first in Asian countries. It's not surprising that Shiseido has one. If you want to break up an age spot the fastest possible way, then your best bet is laser. Be sure to use SPF every day along with these.
Arbonne Revelage is an excellent whitener, which works by breaking up dark spots from below and keeping them from forming from the top.

Mary Kay TimeWise® Even Complexion Essence
I consider this more of a preventative, than a curative. I want to see faster results. I have no patience.

What serums do you know, use and love?
As I think of more, I will update.

Karin
www.savvythinker.com

Originally posted 2010-01-28 20:49:42.

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